Govt expects to vaccinate 70 per cent of population by year-end
At least 70 per cent of Thai citizens would be fully vaccinated by the year-end, the Public Health Ministry said.
Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, director-general of the Department of Disease Control, said once the vaccination of the elderly, people with chronic diseases and pregnant women was finished, the ministry would vaccinate the general public and children aged 12 years or above.
He said guidelines to contain the spread of Covid-19 would focus on reducing the number of infections and deaths, and easing restrictions gradually to enable people to live under new normal principles safely.
He added that restrictions would be eased based on the outbreak situation, vaccination coverage and implementation of preventive measures, such as bubble and seal and universal prevention.
"Universal prevention is the principle to protect one self from Covid-19 based on the assumption that everyone may be infected with the virus, such as by avoiding going outdoors unless necessary and disinfecting frequently touched areas. If they are at risk of infection, they should take an antigen test for Covid-19," he explained.
He expected the Covid-19 situation to improve once the vaccination achieves the target and people folliw the universal prevention principle.
As of Saturday, 22,617,701 people were given the first shot, 7,221,368 people were given the second shot, and 581,438 people were given the third shot, bringing total Covid-19 vaccine doses administered to 30,420,507.